Electric regulator.



No. 865,516. PATENTED SEPT. 10, 1907.

P. G. NEWELL, ELECTRIC REGULATOR.

APPLICATION PI LED 0CI'.2 2. 1904.

sBHBETFsgEET 1.

WITNESSEa INVENTOR No. 865,516. PATENT-ED SEPT. 10, 1907.

F. NEWELL. ELECTRIC REGULATOR.

APPLICATION FILED OGT.22. 1904.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

wn'ussszs UNITED STATES- FRANK c. NEWELL, OFFWILKINSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA,ASSIGNOR TO wns'rmouousn PATENT crimes.

ELECTRIC 8: MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION PENNSYLVANIA.

' ELECTRIC R G LATOR.

No. 865,516: I

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 10,1907

Application filed October 22,1904. Serialli'o. 229,584.

To all whom it may concern} Be it known that I, FRANK O. NEWELL, acitizen of the United States, residing at Wilkinsburg, in the county ofAllegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a certain new anduseful Ele'ctri'c Regulator, of which the following is a specification.My invention relates 'to electric generators, and especially to meansfor automatically controlling the output of a variable speed generator.Its object is, in

general, to avoid the prodnction of any more current at the generatorthan is necessary for actual use in the circuit; and in particular, tocontrol the current bydevices which'are automatically operated by thesaid current, to regulate the voltage oirtlie circuit, as by varying thestrength of the field of thegenerator. Other objects are, to provide anelectro-magnetic regulator for these purposes; and to delicately adjustand insure operation of theregulator promptly so as to automaticallyshift certain resistances into or out of a circuit containing theexciting field coils of the generator. These objects. and otheradvantages which will hereinafter appear, I attain by the constructionand arrangement of apparatus as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, wherein I Figure 1 is a perspective .view of an arrangement ofcoils for the purposeof my invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical section through theregulator;

Figure 3 is a horizontal section of the same with the controller barremoved;

Figure 4 is a vertical section taken at right angles to the section ofFigure 2, and

- Figure 5 is a diagram showing for illustration,'an arrangement of the,several coils and other parts with respect to the generator.

It has been customary to regulate the current sup-' plied to anytranslating device by simply introducing resistance in the circuitbetween the generator and the translating de vice, leaving the voltageat the generator the same. This is very inconvenient and oftenpractically impossible to accomplish autumatically. If the generator hasvariable speed there is not only constant waste of power, but there isgreat danger of burning out connections and insulation by the rapidbuilding up of field strength and the production of mdre current thancan be used. Though my invention is of course not-limited to anyparticular apparatus or use, it may for illustration be described asadapted for use on by my regulator.

electric cars where the motor is employed asa generator when running bymomentum, to supply current for an electric brake. In such apparatus,especially where the field is excited by a coil in a branch of the maincircuit, whether shunt or series wound, the above difiiculties'arepronounced, but are readily overcome Referring first to the diagram ofFigure 5, which plates 19.

illustrates such apparatus; the generator G with errciting field isin'circuit' with the coil 6 which is usedas hereinafter described forthe purpose of shifting the arm 11, so as to cut in the resistance of arheostat It. The resistance coil 16 is connected both to the field -F ofthe generator and to a translating device T on which the current is tobe used. Another branch of? the circuit leading from the rheostat isthrough line b which completes the circuit throughfthe field of thegenerator and then through the connection 0 joins the wire d-leading tothe tianslating device T.

In the apparatus shown in Figures 2, 3, and 4, cspecially', there isprovided the coil 6 which may be made of a few turns of heavy copper.wire, and in the field of this coil uponthe shaft 7, I have mountedelectro-magnetically operated controller bars 8 in such a position bthat when the current passes through the coil 6 the bars will have a'tendency to take a vertical or axial position within the coil 6., I mayuse one or more such controller bars. Connected with them are arms 9,carry ing pivotally mounted levers '11 pivoted at 10 to ride loosely andea ch carrying a contact wheel 12 which rolls over the contact bars 146f the rheostat. The wheels 12 move indep cndently and each is keptpressed I down by a spring 13 into close contact, but all of them v haveelectrical connection with the shaft 7, which connects with the wire I)of Figure 5.

The controller bars 8 aredesigned to be a little off balance when thecurrent begins to flow.

To retain them in their positions shown and to return them afterdisplacement, as well as to provide resistance to regulate the amount ofmovementfithe two telescopingtubes 21, 22, contain the'coil-compressionspring 23. The inside tube 21 is pivoted at its upper 'end to the casingupon which'the resistance coil 6 is wound, and the outer tube 22 ispivoted at the sides, as indic'ated' in dotted lines, to the bar 8. Thespring 23 is of Eourse adjusted to yield at the desired limit ofamperage at which the magnetic pull or repulsion is to turn thecontroller bars and move the contact wheels 12. Conveniently arrangedaround the box 20 are a se-.

- ries of resistance coils 16, which may be made of iron Referring nowto the diagram of Figure switch S is closed, the generator G (supposedto be in motion) sends current through the coil 6 and causes the 5',when the controller bars to tend to take a vertical attitude-inopposition to the springs 23, d :iving the contact wheels 12 along thesurfaces of the contacts 14 of the rheostat. As the parts now stand inFigure it will be seen that 5 when the current in wire a arrives at thejunction between the coil 16 and the arm 11 it will divide, part goingthrough the branch 1) directly through the fieldof the generator, andthe rest going through the resistance coil 16 and thence through branch11 and the translating device T, after joining the current in the wire0. That is, the field. Fis in a loop around the rheostat and a largepart of the current will go directly from Wire a to wirejib', throughthe field, and then to the translating device; While a smaller part willgo through the rheostat coil 16 in parallel and then'to the translatingdevice. But as the arm 11 moves along the rheo Y siatmore-resistance iscut into series with'the field. circuit, between branch a and the branchb, so that the field coil of the generator has the less current andthere-v '-2fl jfore-prodnces less voltage of the armature and reducesthe current ofthe generator circuit. The current in coil-'6' will thusdirectly govern the position of the con: troller bar 8 and theexcitation df th' field, and govern the current through the translatingdevice T-so it shall Zia-notifies above a particular voltage thusavoiding the danger or" burning out connections and also avoiding wasteof power consequent upon generating greater current than is necessaryfor the purposes-of the apparatus. V It wilibe understoodof course thatthis general principle of varying the resistances in the main and branch.

circuits so as to-cut down the voltage generated at G bymeans of acoil 6which is traversed-by the curd-exit in thev mainv circuit and operatesthe rheostat, isfapplicable .to various forms of apparatus and is notconfined" shiftable contact member .for the rhees tat constituting tothe specific apparatus herein set forth for illustra tion. I

Having thus described my invention aind illustrated its use, what Iclaim as new and desir tozsecure by 40.". Letters Patent, is thefollowing:

" 1. An electric regulator comprising amain generator'j circhit having arheostat ,in series, a second 'circnitlfor exciting the field of thegenerator, having one terminal connected to the main circuit, and amagnetically operated,

the other terminal of the second circuit.

2. An electric regulator comprising a mainQgenenatonf circuit having arheostat miseries, a second circuit ion} connected to the main generatorcircuigand an automatic shiftable contact member for the. rheostatmagnetically,

operated from the main circuit andconstituting the other v exciting thefield of, the generator having one terminal with one terminal connectedto the 'm'ztiii circuit and the other terminal constituting amovable-rheostat contact member, of a rheostat and a coil in the maincii'cuit,'and devices by which said coil magnetically operates therheostat contact member, said devices comprising a controlling bar inthe magnetic field actuating several common contact arms, said contactarms comprising-resiliently mounted rollers to engage the contact pointsof' thel rheostat. l

4. In combination in an electric regulator, resistance coils, anexciting coii' within the same, a magnetically operable bar pivoted andresilientlysupported within the exciting coils, a series of contactpoints for the resistance coils, and a contact arm carried by theban-andwadapted' to engage the contact points.

5. in a regulator the combination with ca, generator? circuit and asecond circuit tor exciting the field thereof, of resistance coils 17,connected contacts 14, an actuating coil 6, magnetic bar. 8 resilientlypivoted therein, and a series of contact rollers 12 connected withsaid-bar to shift contact along said rheostat contacts, -the excitingcoil G'being within the resistance coils 17, substantially as described.l v l 6. In an electric regulator the combination with a suitablesupportingframe, oii i'esistance coils,, an excitingcoil inside thesame, a magnetically operated'bar pivoted and resiliently supportedwithin the exciting coil and several resiliently mounted contact armsmaking. engagement between said bar and the contact points'of thereother end connected to'the main circuit at one side of the rheostat.

8-. The-combination with a generator'and amain circuit containinganenergizing winding and a rheostat having; ,a movable contact member forsecuring connections at ,diife'rent'points onlthe rheostat,-ofa partoperable such winding for automatically shifting the contact membgr, anda second circuit for the exciting field coils having. one endthereofconnectedjp the contact 'member and theothercend-thereof connectedto themain! circuit orithe return side .of the rheostatli 3 -9 ."Incombination witha generator andfa 'main' circuit including-enoperatingiwinding and nheostat' provided ed tobe-operatedby the windingand connected to,- the I contact member and a. second circuit forthe'excitin'g. field 'coli s onneotcd it-Tone end. to the main circuiton .th'e :re'gu sidei-ot the rheostatfandtoonneofed at the other --end,wi tiixiihe-; shifting contact member-on the rheostat wherebythe'mnount oiresistance in fx nnt' oI-the-donta.ot.

member-gnd the' amount ofcurrent in the se'condcircuit;

controlled by? the currenizin th'e-mainfclrcnitg I I Initesfignon'ywhereofzi; have hereunder signedimy name in the presence of theo:subscribedw=-witnesses..

D-LEA?" n I -with a shifting contact member, of magneticmeans adapt-

